Two school districts in Madison County will let residents decide in an upcoming vote if they should move ahead with a proposal to merge.

An advisory vote has been scheduled for Dec. 10 in the Hamilton and Morrisville-Eaton school districts. This straw vote will determine whether or not the districts will proceed with the proposed merger. If residents in either district say no, that blocks the proposal.

The vote will be held from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. in both districts. The advisory vote is just the first vote in several that would be scheduled before a merger could take place.

If voters in both districts agree to proceed, both school boards would have to vote to move ahead. If they did, a binding voter referendum would be held in early February.

The districts will hold a number of community informational meetings, which have yet to be scheduled, and will also visit groups that request a presentation. The SES Consulting Firm conducted a Merger Feasibility Study and presented the results to both districts in September.

The two districts have been discussing the merger for at least 18 months, as they wrestle with declining enrollment, rising costs and cuts in state aid. Staff have been cut, and programs trimmed in order for the two smaller districts to balance their budgets. M-E has cut its staff by 20 percent, and extra-curricular activities have been reduced by 50 percent.

Hamilton, where enrollment has dropped about 26 percent in 10 years, has about 600 students while M-E, with about 750 students, has seen its enrollment drop about 22 percent.

"We've lost over $2 million in state aid in the past four years, and we're trying to keep the same level of quality instruction'' said Hamilton Superintendent Diana Bowers. "Our budget is only $12 million, so to lose $2 million has a real impact."

Through cuts and attrition, Hamilton has eliminated 12 staff positions, and has had to offer some of its classes every other year. "We need a solution,'' Bowers said.

Residents understand something has to be done, but not everyone agrees merging is the best choice.

"The community seems to understand we need to at least seriously consider this,''said Morrisville-Eaton Superintendent Michael Drahos. "There is not great enthusiasm about it, and so both boards feel it has to be a community decision.

"Staying the way we are is going to get harder and harder,'' he said. "If we want to get back some of the programs we are losing, a merger is probably the only way to go."

There are drawbacks, such as longer bus rides for kids both to school and for athletics.

Under the merger, the high school would be in Hamilton, while grades six through eight would be located at the current M-E high school. Elementary students would stay in their respective buildings.

There would be advantages too. The state offers merging districts a 40 percent increase in operating aid for five years as an incentive and to cover any merger costs. Building aid goes up, too.

"We would receive $20 million in additional state aid over the next 14 to 15 years,'' Bowers said. "It would allow us to keep our program viable and strong."

With property tax caps, raising taxes to balance the budget isn't an option, the superintendents say. In M-E, a one-percent increase in the tax rate only yields about $36,000.

If residents say no in December, the districts could look at merging with other nearby districts such as Madison or Stockbridge Valley, Drahos said. With no merger, the districts face further reductions.

"Something has to be done,'' Drahos said. "To continue the way we are is a nightmare scenario. But we can't pretend these aren't difficult choices."